The Prince of Frost
The Prince of Frost is the leader of the Winter Court of the Arch-fey. He rules over the Vale of Long Night from his Fortress of Frozen Tears. He is a figure of refinement and majesty as well as terror. He rules over an army known as the Winter-touched, a group of fey who follow his orders without question and enforce his wishes with all their ability. Those who speak of him speak of his prisons- menageries beneath the fortress where the tears of those kept there add to the fortress itself, a place where the howling winds of the Vale are indistinguishable from the howls of pain from its prisoners and the howls of the winter wolves. They speak of his citadel, resplendent and glittering as he schemes to expand the reaches of winter's grasp, planning the expansion down to the smallest finger of frost. For all the fear and loathing caused by his mere suggestion, his intimidating presence is tempered by his cool wit and sharp tongue, which in turn are magnified by his dignified composure and appearance. He enjoys negotiating and argument and will always honor an oath (there is only one he has broken). Those who know him well know that the horror he offers is only for his enemies. There are those who swear fealty to him among his warlocks, powerful souls that become Scions of Long Night, the trusted of the Prince. History of the Prince The Feywild was changed forever when the son of Tiandra, a young fey in all regards, rose up against the master of the Fortress of Sorrow, Dark Crow, seizing its power for himself and rising up as the master of the citadel with the support of his lover Koliada. Together they rose the banner of the Court of Winter and became the Lord of Frost and his lady, the rulers of the Fortress of Frozen Tears, for they were those who would weep no more. That was the story they told themselves when they held aloft the banner of their people and sang the songs of their revolution. Eventually the revolution ended. The rule of the Prince of Frost and Koliada went well but cracks began to form in their alliance with the other courts. Despite being their rulers the Seelie Court had never been able to fully take back the reigns of control over the Feywild, indeed they still spent much of their time moving across the planes. Oberon was not a warrior, that much was plain when the revolution of the Court of Stars had been necessary in the first place, but now it begged the question of how and why they had come to be in charge in the first place. The prince allowed these thoughts to pass, focusing instead on his wife, on building something with her that could withstand time. The two had been in the court of the Dark Crow together, both hostages of the Unseelie Court, both forced to live in the torturous Fortress of Sorrow, yet both also knew what it took to unseat a ruler from their seat of power. The two were vigilant at quelling threats from within their borders, of making themselves popular rulers among their people. It came as an ultimate surprise that their first and greatest challenge would come from outside the plane. Adventurers, planeswalkers called the Band of the Black Dawn, with an army of ten thousand at their border. In an instant their positions were threatened. They called in to the other courts for support, sent countless messengers, Tiandra's forces wouldn't be anywhere near the Vale of Long Night and the forces of the Gloaming couldn't travel nearly as fast. Begrudgingly, the Prince of Frost called upon the Seelie Court for assistance, imploring them to send their centaur allies from the Plains. When help finally arrived the invading force had already pushed into the Fortress itself, having made it through winter wolves and fey, leaving the Prince and Koliada standing as the last line of defense against the four marauders that led the charge. The Prince, facing his attackers, hesitated upon seeing that the invading force were not monsters or fomorians, as he had suspected but were in fact humanoids who appeared ordinary. Koliada did not hesitate, she grabbed their leader by the throat and froze it with her grasp, causing their windpipe to rupture and leaving them bleeding and choking for air, she turned to their mage and shot a hefty icicle between their eyes before a third, a knight in ebony armor, ran her through with his greatsword and turned to the Prince, numb in shock. The prince himself does not recall what happened next and truly none of the invaders were left alive to tell the tale. The prince cradled Koliada in his arms on the balcony of his palace, watching dawn break as his allies from the Summer Court and the Seelie Court both finally arrived and his heart became just as cold as the ice surrounding him. The Prince of Frost sealed himself away, began adding to his Fortress of Frozen Tears, once a place built with the tears of those he loved and respected who would cry no more, now a monument to pain. He no longer attended the yearly meets of the Court of Stars and he estranged himself to even his mother, preferring the howling winds of the Vale of Long Night, that testament to the darkness within the hearts of fey that now seemed so inviting. It is not hard to see then how easily the messenger of Auril was able to gain entrance to his halls and gain his ear. It is not hard to imagine how he was tempted by her offer- an unending Long Winter. Koliada had remarked often that in winter the cold tried to retake the world from the sun, it seemed fitting that the cold win. He agreed to the terms of Auril after careful deliberation and the two set to work preparing armies to mobilize on the rest of the Feywild. The Prince would move West while Auril came from the South, both expected the war to be short. The first problem came when Teal Cardahn returned to Shinaelestra and invested gold and men in the area. In the manner of a few months the rangers who had been squatting there were turned into a military force which was in turn fortified with reserves and troops from the material plane. The walls had been restored, forges were in operation, indeed the entire city was once again in operation. This had not been taken into account and the Prince became concerned that Auril's forces would spend too much time on the city- long enough that the rest of the Feywild would be able to better plan their defenses. When he learned that Teal Cardahn had entered the Halls of the Elder Gods he made sure to be ready to greet Teal and his companions with a show of force. When they reached the layer of Auril they were attacked by a single unit of Auril's army then invited back to speak. The prince explained that thousands of these units were ready to be deployed, that they would crash through the walls of Shinaelestra and it would fall unless they bent the knee to Auril. Teal contemplated the offer before offering two counterpoints. If the Prince wanted him to bend the knee it meant he was already hesitant about invading the city, surely none of the other leaders in the Feywild had been given this offer. Secondly, if the Long Winter came to pass his people would likely perish, this time at the willing hands of their leader. He could not accept. The Prince grew solemn, pledging that if nothing changed soon, his people would be the first to fall. Teal was expected to perish within the Halls of the Elder Gods, which is why it came as a great surprise when the champion of Set, Typhon was destroyed. The party, victorious, could then use the gifts of the Elder Gods, which they did after consulting on each with the mind inside of the Acorn of Wo Mai, which gave advice regarding how each could be used. When the gift of Hathor offered the power to bring a dead entity back to life, the party was hesitant, they had lost companions over the long journey, it would have been simple and justifiable to bring back a friend. Instead, they made a strange decision on the advice of the Acorn and used their power to resurrect Koliada, reuniting the Prince of Frost with his long-lost love. The Prince then broke a vow, the first and last time he would. He dissolved his alliance with Auril in order to keep his word to Teal, for things had indeed changed, and if only for an instant his heart was warmed by an act of selfless compassion. With Koliada back at his side he is complete, a force of terror to be sure, but not without reason. The Court of Stars is expected to convene again soon. Category:Archfey Category:Neutral Category:Grave Domain Category:Winter Domain